The movement planning of robotic systems aims at ensuring a collision-free movement of the robotic system between a corresponding start and target position. A collision-free movement trajectory along a plurality of intermediate positions is determined in this way using suitable planning methods, said intermediate positions being linked to one another by way of trajection elements.
In known movement planning methods, the individual intermediate points and/or trajectory elements in the so-called configuration room are planned. The configuration room is described here by means of axial positions of one or several rotatory and/or translational movement axes of the robotic system. With known methods, a collision-free trajectory is thus calculated in the configuration room. Testing a configuration position for collision freedom proceeds such that based on the known forward kinematics of the robotic system, the geometry of the system is calculated in a stationary base coordinates system which does not move with the robot and a test is carried out for collisions with correspondingly stored objects in the base coordinates system.
In conventional planning methods, the trajectory elements between the collision-free positions in the configuration room are generally straight. This is problematic in that straight movements in the configuration room in the stationary base coordinates system are often significantly curved particularly in the case of the articulated arm kinematics of the robotic system. With curved movements, collisions are significantly more likely than with a straight movement in the stationary base coordinates system. The planning effort and planning times involved in conventional planning methods are thus very high since a plurality of configuration positions have to be tested until a collision-free trajectory is found. Furthermore, a curved movement in the stationary base coordinates system is not very plausible for persons and/or operating personnel in the surroundings of the robotic system and is thus rarely accepted.